INCREASING BRAND PENETRATION AND THE BATTLE FOR NEW CONSUMERS
“Politics is not a game. It is an earnest business.”
Winston Churchill How can we increase brand penetration and win the the battle for new consumers? Winning new customers and increasing brand penetration are crucial for all of us. As politicans do battle for the hearts and minds of voters, what can we learn from a wide range of experts to help our brands triumph in the quest for new consumers? We spoke to a broad range of experts from diverse fields to explore the topic; from the Head of Brand Strategy at Twitter to a political advertising expert, an Activist and Head of Projects at an NGO, a campaign strategist, a parliamentary agent, a politics and current affairs television producer, a digital engagement expert and a political camapaign strategist. All very different perspectives but there were key lessons, surprising similairities and fascinating differentiators that opened our eyes to some of the learning from the cut-throat political arena. This is what we discovered..
KNOW YOUR VOICE & WHEN TO USE IT
• Enter bigger conversations to grow your brand’s market penetration When you ladder up and talk about something bigger than your brand, or even your category, you can speak to people who you might not have ever reached before • A consistent voice isn’t always the best route to winning new customers In a world where brands are obsessed with having a consistent voice, adapting that voice to different audiences is often more effective
KNOW YOUR ENEMY & KNOW YOURSELF • Know your enemy Finding and cultivating enemies or tensions is a way of defining yourself in politics. Brands don't normally criticise their competitors but disruption can be a potent weapon • Go after your competitors Using communications to interfere with competitor’s strategies and nullify their activity can be a powerful tactic and one that’s underused by brands. Most brand managers obsess about market share, but do they concentrate too heavily on growing their own rather than tactics to reduce their rivals?t • Don’t neglect your core Traditionally majorities are won by going after your opponents' voters but this can leave your core supporters feeling neglected and vulnerable to new competitors, so always keep your core supporters in mind
STAND FOR SOMETHING • Win hearts and minds Harness the power of evangelists - passion moves people to do things for your brand. If you can provide your consumers with something fun to do, they will take the word out for you • Be agile and responsive You need core principles but you can have other thoughts and beliefs that evolve based on how behaviours and needs shift – this means you need to listen harder to what consumers want and adapt to feedback in real time
UNLEASH
• The power of human storytelling YOUR INNER The importance of telling stories POLITICIAN to engage – it’s not enough to give messages, people need to know more to engage and care about something. Make sure • Crisis? What crisis? those stories are It’s a shame to waste a crisis - politicos are great at using a crisis humanised and real to prove their strength and leadership - are brands?t • It’s all about trust Trust forms the basis of loyalty. Once trust is broken, it’s hard to claw it back and connect with your audiencet
• The power of the stunt Both challenger brands and political parties can punch above their weight by harnessing the power of the stunt. Use attention-grabbing stunts and creativity to create news – don’t just piggyback what is already happening
• Content is key to attract the undecided Targeting undecided consumers is extremely difficult and requires superlative creative content
• The most important thing might not be the best thing to communicate Levers of power can often differ from the levers of influence that are needed to pull the levers of power. Sometimes the most important subject isn’t always the right thing to communicate • Stay relevant Stay on top of what is relevant and what isn’t - something you might think is relevant might no longer be, and that will create a disconnection between your brand and consumers • If not now, when? If you want to motivate people, you have to create a sense of urgency so they feel compelled to act right away
AND R B R U O Y ASE E R C N I R U O F O Y E L L T L I T A W B HOW THE N I W D N A ION PENETRAT ERS? M U S N O C NEW
6th Floor 103-113 Regent Street London W1B 4HL Jonathan Williams +44 7734 563 541 jonathanw@mash.uk.com